Sedena and Navy Team Up to Catch 'El Guano' - Aureliano Guzmán Loera

An operation carried out by the Navy and Sedena this Friday in the region of Tamazula, Durango has resulted in the arrest of ten individuals, including Aureliano Guzmán Loera, better known as "El Guano." El Guano is the brother of notorious drug kingpin Joaquín Guzmán Loera, alias "El Chapo Guzmán."

According to local news source El Debate, the U.S. government had offered a $5 million reward for information leading to El Guano's capture, a bounty that remains unclaimed.

In the early hours of Friday morning, elements of the Mexican Army and Navy were deployed to the area known as El Durazno, a region controlled by the Sinaloa Cartel. At least 200 soldiers and eight helicopters were involved in the operation, which targeted El Guano.

Reports suggest that the operation was carried out in multiple residential and commercial properties, but there is no official information on the military tactic used.

El Guano is the leader of a criminal group called "Los Guanos," which has been locked in a power struggle with his nephews, "El Ratón" and "El Chapito," over control of areas in Badiraguato. According to a leaked report from the Secretary of National Defense (Sedena), the Sinaloa Cartel fragmented into four groups following El Chapo's capture, with El Guano leading one of them.

This is not the first time that El Guano has been involved in family disputes. He is suspected of orchestrating the murder of his half-brother Ernesto Guzmán, which sparked a bloody war between the Pacific and Beltrán Leyva brothers.

Although El Guano has been known to authorities for some time, he became more visible when he was seen with Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who appeared in the background of a video greeting Maria Consuelo Loera Pérez, El Chapo's mother, now serving a sentence in the United States.

Aureliano Guzmán Loera, better known as "El Guano"

Aureliano Guzmán-Loera is wanted by the U.S. Department of State for his involvement in an international drug trafficking conspiracy. A high-ranking member of the Sinaloa Cartel and brother of former leader Joaquin Guzmán-Loera, he is also known as "El Guano." His date of birth is uncertain but is believed to be either July 20, 1945, October 20, 1946, or June 16 of an unknown year. He was born in Sinaloa, Mexico, and holds Mexican nationality and citizenship. His physical description is unknown, with no reported height or weight, and he has black hair and brown eyes. There are no known scars, tattoos, or distinguishing marks.

Aureliano Guzmán-Loera's drug trafficking organization controls the smuggling of poppy, marijuana, heroin, fentanyl, methamphetamine, and cocaine from Sinaloa, Mexico through Sonora, Mexico, and into the United States. The organization operates drug grow operations and production facilities throughout various locations within what is referred to as Mexico’s “Golden Triangle,” which is known for Sinaloa Cartel-sanctioned large-scale commercial drug cultivation operations.

The Aureliano Guzmán-Loera DTO derives its main source of income from cultivating marijuana and poppy fields in the Sierra Madre Mountain Range of Sinaloa, Mexico. The organization is based out of La Tuna, Badiraguato, Sinaloa, Mexico.

On November 13, 2019, Aureliano Guzmán-Loera was indicted by a federal grand jury in the District of Arizona on four counts related to an international conspiracy to distribute heroin, cocaine, and fentanyl. On February 19, 2020, he was indicted again by a federal grand jury in the District of Arizona on two counts related to the international distribution of marijuana, heroin, cocaine, and methamphetamine.

The U.S. Department of State is offering a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to Aureliano Guzmán-Loera's arrest and/or conviction.